Welcome

Welcome to the POZ/AIDSmeds Community Forums, a round-the-clock discussion area for people with HIV/AIDS, their friends/family/caregivers, and
others concerned about HIV/AIDS. Click on the links below to browse our various forums; scroll down for a glance at the most recent posts; or join in the
conversation yourself by registering on the left side of this page.

Privacy Warning: Please realize that these forums are open to all, and are fully searchable via Google and other search engines. If you are HIV positive
and disclose this in our forums, then it is almost the same thing as telling the whole world (or at least the World Wide Web). If this concerns you, then do not use a
username or avatar that are self-identifying in any way. We do not allow the deletion of anything you post in these forums, so think before you post.

The information shared in these forums, by moderators and members, is designed to complement, not replace, the relationship between an individual and his/her own
physician.

All members of these forums are, by default, not considered to be licensed medical providers. If otherwise, users must clearly define themselves as such.

Forums members must behave at all times with respect and honesty. Posting guidelines, including time-out and banning policies, have been established by the moderators
of these forums. Click here for “Am I Infected?” posting guidelines. Click here for posting guidelines pertaining to all other POZ/AIDSmeds community forums.

We ask all forums members to provide references for health/medical/scientific information they provide, when it is not a personal experience being discussed. Please
provide hyperlinks with full URLs or full citations of published works not available via the Internet. Additionally, all forums members must post information which are
true and correct to their knowledge.

Author
Topic: Two reported cured of HIV in Kenya? (Read 24648 times)

I have not completely dismissed the journal yet but I am taking steps to verify these claims. Your info is from blogs and this is what one blogger says on the same site;

Martin William Bredenkamp

ThailandMarch 22, 2013I have been looking at the Science Publication Group as well since I also need papers printed. There are scammers out there who want to make a quick buck. The world is full of those.

I did, however, check this publication group and this is what I found: A new effort to create a chance to publish in a world where there is cut-throat competition. Electronic journals that are accessible to all at no cost. (Obviously they need to cover costs somewhere, so they charge the author only when his papers are accepted. Many journals do that.) They have been on the air since last year and there are papers accessible to all, and these papers do show up on Google.

What more do you want? Sure, they would be looking for reviewers and editorial board members – they have to start somewhere. 106 year ago, Martin Rundkvist, the acclaimed archeological journal was also a new upstart and could have had the same comments made about it. Maybe in a 100 years time this publication group will outstrip your acclaimed journal because they offer more general readability. Their impact factors will take a while to improve but if they have a found a niche, they surely will improve as people notice them and use them.

Scammers? No, I don’t believe so. What they need is good papers to put them in the market, and they will get them. Many of the acclaimed journals have puffed up editors and reviewers who will not allow the sun to shine on any of their competition, even if they are better and deserve a fair chance.

Absolutely. I had originally posted what I'll quote below, but I deleted it because I wanted to investigate further.

I appreciate that academics in developing nations may not have the money and/or resources to get published in reputable journals, so I decided to hang-fire until I could gather more evidence. I couldn't find any evidence that Science Publishing Group wasn't a scam, but I also couldn't find any direct evidence that it was a scam either. (if that makes sense?)

Check properly. That is an online version of a peer reviewed journal and the article is on page 14-23 International Journal of Immunology with a proper DOI

The International Journal of Immunology is not the sort of peer-review journal I'm talking about. I'm talking about a proper peer-review journal, like The Journal of Infectious Diseases for example, where your paper has to pass peer-scrutiny (peer-review) before it ever appears in the journal, much less online.

The SPG website has a list of people who allegedly review the articles, but all you have to do in order to qualify to review is to be published there yourself. Sounds like a circle-jerk to me.

I have not completely dismissed the journal yet but I am taking steps to verify these claims. Your info is from blogs and this is what one blogger says on the same site;

Martin William Bredenkamp

ThailandMarch 22, 2013I have been looking at the Science Publication Group as well since I also need papers printed. There are scammers out there who want to make a quick buck. The world is full of those.

I did, however, check this publication group and this is what I found: A new effort to create a chance to publish in a world where there is cut-throat competition. Electronic journals that are accessible to all at no cost. (Obviously they need to cover costs somewhere, so they charge the author only when his papers are accepted. Many journals do that.) They have been on the air since last year and there are papers accessible to all, and these papers do show up on Google.

What more do you want? Sure, they would be looking for reviewers and editorial board members – they have to start somewhere. 106 year ago, Martin Rundkvist, the acclaimed archeological journal was also a new upstart and could have had the same comments made about it. Maybe in a 100 years time this publication group will outstrip your acclaimed journal because they offer more general readability. Their impact factors will take a while to improve but if they have a found a niche, they surely will improve as people notice them and use them.

Scammers? No, I don’t believe so. What they need is good papers to put them in the market, and they will get them. Many of the acclaimed journals have puffed up editors and reviewers who will not allow the sun to shine on any of their competition, even if they are better and deserve a fair chance.

Science Publication Group! – Go for it.

At the end of the day, Barasa, if you want to be taken seriously by the scientific community today (rather than in 100 years time), you're going to have to get published somewhere currently reputable.

I would suggest that maybe you contact an organisation like TAG to see how to go about getting your studies legitimised.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

NO. At the end of the day, I do not want to be taken seriously. I want the work to be accessible by the scientific world so the next step can be taken. I checked again and I think it is new but authentic. I went through peer review myself and had to revise some parts according to the advice so what is claimed is hogwash.Does the journal make my findings available to the scientific world? If so, then I go for it. Complications in communications can only lead to unnecessary delays as people die and suffer. I discovered this methodology by unique opportunity, I believe, not anything special about me that nobody else has. What if something happens to me like death before this publication? I am working on my next paper- the methodology used to achieve cure and guess what? I am going to publish it right there. If SPG is unknown, it will become very well known.

Since as you say, it's not a cure, but a step in the cure, why did you come up with this self-description... Also why would you make a point of using the word "originator" if you aren't interested in recognition? Every professor I know has career considerations and if someone is onto something, he/she may certainly be willing to share it around for the good of humanity, or some other good, but will NOT throw away personal benefit, in the process...

So lets get this straight. The published work is about eliminating bone-marrow reservoirs. But you already (?) have a complete "cure" technique, these methods and mysterious other "agents", and the world will hear about it in due time....

This complete cure has been accomplished by you? Or not yet?

If you have two complete cures, tell me now. PM me with names, etc. My HIV doc is also a research professor in Geneva Switzerland of some renown. Also in with UN AIDS. So, we can fly in the Kenyan cures and Dr. Barasa, get it all checked out to the satisfaction of our suspicious, perhaps culturally prejudiced minds. With the clout of UNAIDS and University of Geneva, this will all be done quickly for the benefit of humanity. Because, Dr. Barasa, this will all be easily and quickly checkable, in the labs and conferences rooms of Geneva Switzerland. You got the paper trails, I assume. And its all on the up and up, so let's do this...

We can raise money for the travel expenses on Kickstarter.

« Last Edit: June 19, 2013, 08:48:19 AM by mecch »

Logged

“From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need” 1875 K Marx

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Even though I feel these kind of (apparently empty) cure promises are disrespectful towards us pozzies, I must say that I feel rather amused by this episode. It's been one of the more interesting threads on here...

I said I am publishing the full methodology without any alteration or reservation so from there it is up to everyone to take up and continue, so long as this publication is accessible. What use is publishing a proof of cure and withholding the methodology, even when you publish in SCIENCE?I think I should take a break and concentrate on my publcation which I am working on now

If you are sincere about your findings TAG is the place to take your work to be reviewed This is the TAG mission statement

Treatment Action Group is an independent AIDS research and policy think tank fighting for better treatment, a vaccine, and a cure for AIDS.

TAG works to ensure that all people with HIV receive lifesaving treatment, care, and information.

We are science-based treatment activists working to expand and accelerate vital research and effective community engagement with research and policy institutions.

TAG catalyzes open collective action by all affected communities, scientists, and policy makers to end AIDS.

Im beginning to grudgingly believe that you think you have found something useful , if that is true and you really think you have something TAG is something you shouldn't ignore because if there is a shred of truth to your claims they wont ignore you .

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Methotrexate is an approved anti-cancer drug which inhibits DNA synthesis. It is active against a wide range of tumours and is also used to treat severe psoriasis.

It has severe haematological, pulmonary, gastrointestinal and other toxicities. Common side-effects can include leukopenia (low levels of leukocytes, a type of white blood cell), thrombocytopenia (low levels of platelets), oral ulcers, diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting. It should not be taken by pregnant women.

Taking aspirin can reduce the amount of methotrexate that is excreted by the body, resulting in increased side-effects.

Methotrexate comes in the form of yellow tablets or a liquid for intravenous injection. It is available in a generic (non-brandname) formulation and is also manufactured by Pharmacia & Upjohn under the tradename Maxtrex

Methotrexate is an approved anti-cancer drug which inhibits DNA synthesis. It is active against a wide range of tumours and is also used to treat severe psoriasis.

It has severe haematological, pulmonary, gastrointestinal and other toxicities. Common side-effects can include leukopenia (low levels of leukocytes, a type of white blood cell), thrombocytopenia (low levels of platelets), oral ulcers, diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting. It should not be taken by pregnant women.

Taking aspirin can reduce the amount of methotrexate that is excreted by the body, resulting in increased side-effects.

Methotrexate comes in the form of yellow tablets or a liquid for intravenous injection. It is available in a generic (non-brandname) formulation and is also manufactured by Pharmacia & Upjohn under the tradename Maxtrex

Yes there is research being done with methotrexate. However, our dr barasa is doing his off the grid. A search of clinicaltrials.gov shows zero trials that barasa is involved in. Just because he says he has found a cure means absolutely nothing.

From my experiments, methotraxate doesn't seem to have those side effects especially in HIV because it is absorbed immediately on ingestion by the "HUngry" bone marrow and as soon as we begin to see its blood effects, we stop as we know that then the bone marrow is saturated. However it remains very dangerous to use because of other effects which I have explained in the paper and how to overcome these.Methotraxate has been used in clinical trials before, but not with the benefit of the scientific principles at http://www.dovepress.com/true-story-about-hiv-theory-of-viral-sequestration-and-reserve-infecti-peer-reviewed-article-HIV, or how to eradicate the secondary HIV reservoir elsewhere in the body.

If it's true that Dr.Barasa it's not holding or selling the wannabe cureI'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

PS: I take every research involving the word "cure" with a grain of salt.Lately the media is mentioning the word cure for stuff not even in Phase I...

The reason is cure is not useful if it is not used where it is needed. What is the use of curing just a few people when millions are affected? Timothy brown is cured but this means nothing to the rest if his cure cannot be replicated in them. Of course my cure is derived from his case, so it means a lot after all.

Is it possible to enrich myself from this cure by withholding and selling? Yes, but at what expense? A lot of lives lost, suffering, economic loss, and finally even with billions in my accounts, I remain just me. I cannot eat or use more than a normal human being.

Besides I have a lot more to do and keeping glued to HIV will be an impediment to me, that is why I need others to pick up and finish the job of eradicating HIV from the globe. Even if I was given 100000... lifetimes I could never possibly do that on my own.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

I hope you understand that it is not easy to get published, especially in the older journals. They have a huge backlog of accepted yet to be published work and are seriously constrained. Add to the fact that a paper is not coming from a recognized top notch research team in a premier institute with a list of co-authors and a well funded research base with state of the art laboratory and technical equipment.

And there are those peer reviewers who won't tolerate anything apart from accepted positions. My paper is about elucidation of new theories on HIV and I have gone through rough roasting by reviewers. But thank God, I have still managed to get published. I hope this goes well too.

I know the word cure means a lot. But i see many people in this forum hopeless about the cure what I think it could happen in months or decades. But I have hope. Most of us are not doctors and Dr Barasa is one and he is working towards the cure so we should be thankfully to him regardless of what is his goal on that(save the humankind from HIV or money(what I dont think so) or whatever). I dont know nothing about medical research but I ve read some other research about new medicines or way to treat HIV and from what I remember they had some phase 1, 2 and 3 trial. But I dont know if all this is needed if he is just suggesting an available medicine to treat a different disease. If I am not wrong the first medicine available and kind of successful to beat HIV was AZT which was a medicine to treat cancer and was already available on the market. The same as methotraxate the one mentioned by Dr Barasa. I think if Dr Barasa is working on his own or kind of(what I dont know) then I think could be a good idea to some big organization that works towards the cure could try to go to Kenya and check all this at least. From what I understood in Dr Barasa treatment is that it works attacking the HIV on the reservoirs and make your body free of virus forever. I am not sure but I think I read about some test to check the amount of HIV on reservoirs but even if they are really expensive why dont check on those 2 patients. I dont think it could be so expensive thinking in 30 million people that could be free of this disease. Dr Barasa, regardless of your results on this trial I am very thankfully to you for the work towards the cure.

A cure is a cure, it is straight forward and has no phases. When you hear of phase 1, 2 or 3 trials for any drug, it means its effectiveness is already established and what is sought is data on the safety in a larger proportion of people with different characteristics in order to determine its suitability, especially when alternative treatments are available.

Good thing, methotraxate has been used from 1947 and there is great volumes of data on it already so we don't need clinical trials of that nature. All we need is validation of the methodology and fine tuning here and there, but it should start to be applied immediately. Of cause scientists will continue studies even when the methodology is in use, as happens with all other drugs in use.

When I say cure I mean we have removed both the bone marrow reserve and all viable reserves from the rest of the body. I have already proved this for my two patients, and others yet to be published. I have about 35 patients on treatment so far.

But i see many people in this forum hopeless about the cure what I think it could happen in months or decades. But I have hope.

I think you have woefully misunderstood many people here then And misunderstood the science of how drugs/cures are created;and not learned the 30+ year history of the HIV epidemic.

I doubt anyone here is HOPELESS about a cure. They (and I) are just very realistic about a cure. For a bunch of us who have lived with HIV for three decades already, we're been hearing the claims that the cure is "just around the corner" or "coming in months" for a long time. Not for months; but for decades, those kinds of claims have been circulating.

In the last 3 decades, science has made incredible leaps-n-bounds in learning so much about HIV, a retrovirus; but just like science hasn't cured the cold, measles, or flu, it hasn't been able to cure this even tricker virus. When you understand how science, peer review, and trials work, you will know that there is no cure that will be here in MONTHS. Perhaps a few years at best; but nothing in the pipeline is anywhere near arriving in months. That's because there's nothing out there yet that has gone through and stood up in the trials, proving itself a "cure" yet. It takes a very long time for human trials to determine the side effects and effectiveness of any medication.

And that process of research, validation, and trials is why barasa is receiving so much critique and skeptisism here. Lofty claims of cures - "cures" that haven't gone through proper research, validation, peer review and trails - have been with us since the beginning of the HIV epidemic. I personally know of people, my friends, who died following some of claims. Others I know have suffered through terrible "extra" side effects following unproven, undocumented drugs and treatments. So far all of those claimed cures have been shams and scams. So far the only medications that have been PROVEN to have any negative effect on HIV have been the numerous ARVs that have come to market.

I've lived with HIV for 30 years, and AIDS 20 of that. I'm not "hopeless"; but I have" high hopes" that a cure might just be found in my lifetime. However, I don't live any of my life waiting, anticipating, or even dreaming of the day when a cure arrives. I take my ARVs every day, and try to live every day to the fullest - because those ARVs have given me that potential. I follow the science, not only working towards a cure; but of the work to improve the meds that are available. If barasa has truly worked on and discovered the method for clearing HIV, for a "cure", then science in the form of proper research, peer review, validation and trials will prove that. Until that day though, his claims (and I did read through his very long presentation ) here without that proof might just be a lot of smoke-n-mirrors. I for one will not be placing any of my "hope" at this time in such fragile, unsubstaniated claims. I wish barasa good luck in his work and HOPE to see, if this really is the "cure", his work validated and put through proper peer review and trials in the upcoming years.

There are those with average intelligence, others somehow with less of it.

Mecch, maybe he thinks the skeptics here have HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorders, and that's why we don't just automatically believe he's found the cure. LOL

Quote

HIV cure can be described as failure of peripheral viral load resurgence and peripheral viral clearance on stoppage of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in a treatment experienced individual with remarkable viral load control.1, 2 In these individuals, viral load is expected to begin rising within days following stoppage of HAART.1,

Wasn't there a report out recently that discussed how SOME people who had been on ARVs were able to stop their medications and not have a resurgence in viral load? without taking methotraxate?

Two weeks ago, the announcement that a baby had been ‘functionally cured’ of HIV disease with the use of very early antiretroviral therapy (ART) caused great excitement at the start of the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2013). Now a study from France has found 14 adult patients who also started a course of ART soon after infection, who subsequently stopped it, and have not had to re-start because they have largely – and in eight cases completely – maintained undetectable viral loads for at least four years after stopping therapy (the baby has, so far, only managed a year off therapy).

Furthermore, the researchers suggest that such cases are only not more common simply because, once having started ART, few people stop. They estimate that 15% of people with HIV, if ART is started within six months of HIV infection and maintained for at least a year, could subsequently become so-called “post-treatment controllers”.

Their estimate is a stark contrast to findings from studies conducted between 1996 and 2000, soon after the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy, which found no evidence that people who began treatment in primary infection could control HIV after stopping treatment. The key difference between those studies, and the French patients described this week, is that earlier studies looked at HIV control in people who had only received treatment for 12 to 18 months. The French patients had been on treatment for an average of three years before stopping, and all started treatment within ten weeks of infection, compared to within six months in previous studies.

Good, leatherman, I can see you can be a good researcher. The explanation is very simple, and I have put it clearly in the paper. If you get HAART before the virus is hidden into the bone marrow i.e before sero-conversion, you will be cured as HIV cannot become chronic without bone marrow reserve. It is the bone marrow reserve that helps build the latent reservoir which then becomes a problem to eradicate.

The same principle is used in post-exposure prophylaxis, Postprep, where if you suspect you have exposure you start HAART without waiting for a positive test, and it works!

For the baby and the French men, obviuously they did not get the virus into the bone marrow. After all they are the same humans like u and me, the only difference is the timing.

It is exactly interesting to know that most of latent HIV is actually in the skin, mostly the scalp and the groin area where infected T memory cells are kept in a sort of quarantine like death row inmates. The immune system does this because it has no capacity to eliminate all of them at once so it buys time to build this capacity. When you develop the capacity by immuno-reconstitution, the immune system starts to attack this latent reserve, but unfortunately runs out of supplies before finishing the job. meanwhile the 'liberated'[ latently infected cells become activated and proceed to viral production so that more latent reserve is formed.

So, yes it is entirely possible to feel like pulling your hair out, may be not entirely because of the thread.

What I do is remove the incessant supply from the bone marrow and add the capacity of the immune system to clear latent reserve in one round.

What I do is remove the incessant supply from the bone marrow and add the capacity of the immune system to clear latent reserve in one round.

Clear enough?

Dr. Basara,

Please excuse my lack of understanding, but it isn't clear for me. My understanding is that the Methotrexate liberates the virus from the bone marrow, however what is used to add additional capacity to the immune system to clear the latent reserve? Also, what is the duration of treatment for each step?

Methotraxate clears infection from the bone marrow by denying the virus access to vulnerable fast multiplying cells on which it depends. The immune system is like an army at war and it operates on financial system for its logistics.

If the system is corrupted as it is in HIV, it fails, and I have identified what is needed to be done to give it the edge over the virus.

For duration, it depends on each individual i.e the size of the reservoir and the level of accumulated waste, anything between 3 weeks and six months. But methotraxate is only taken in two days.

Sometimes the way you explain HIV progression seems to be based on UNTREATED cases.

Still, I get the point about what you are doing for the bone marrow.

Your hypothesis about strengthening the immune system seem neither to be based on people on HAART with long controlled HIV replication, nor always a clinical goal for them. Many of us do not need immune boosting; we need to remove reservoirs.

Wish you would clarify "other agents" mentioned in your own texts and news items about your work.

Logged

“From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need” 1875 K Marx

HIV reservoirs are due to competition between the virus and the immune system where the virus has the upper hand. So HAART is very important to slow down viral processes and you cannot be cured if you have not controlled your viremia with appropriate HAART.

Due to long standing duel between the virus and the immune system, and due to resultant accumulation of waste and backlog of unfinished immune operations, all immune systems of HIV sufferers is below bar. A few people may have very strong systems, especially those recently diagnosed or those who started HAART earlier and are fully compliant. These are likely to clear the virus pronto, but are not the majority.

Some members may feel I am trying to force the treatment down their throats while they are happy the way they live with HAART, let me say this;

[I only joined the forum because of a software that alerts me whenever there is a discussion in my name, not to shop for patientsI have done enough experiments and I have proved the point importantly to myself. After publication those who wish to prove the point to themselves will be at liberty. For that reason I am not taking in more patientsThis cure is not meant for you in particular, it is for all of us , it is for the world, both the infected and uninfected.In fact it is the uninfected who need it most because it is an assurance that they will not be infected in future. HIV infection is a geometric progression in the population and surely after some time, everyone is going to have it, if there was no cure and HAART becomes resistant or the virus mutateslook at the figures;1981- a few homosexuals and iv drug users1986-several thousands1990-several millions2000-30 million2050?2100= almost everyone]

I've been followed this thread for a while and today i saw this report on BBC Newshttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-23132561which seems to corroborate with Dr. Barasa's theory, although the researches warned that is too soon to declare a cure. A new bone marrow without the CCR5 DELTA 32 mutation (which was used in Berlin patient) was used this time and even so this 2 patients appear to be HIV free for weeks up to now. I guess this could give Dr Basara's theory an ideal scenery at the international medical comunity to be presented officially.

@ Rocardobrazil2: somewhat. But remember that with these 2 bone-marrow transplants---without the delta-32 mutation--scientist think that host-vs-graft helped eliminate HIV reservoirs & latent HIV. Some therapeutic vaccines are trying to do this in a way..i.e., by training the immune system to seek HIV. Bionar's Vax-4 is one of these vaccines. There are plenty in the pipeline.

Many Steps & many strategies are going to be needed at fist to get rid of HIV from the body. Perhaps in 20-25 years we will have a single pill or a single injection that will cure HIV...Basara's metrotrexate(spelling?) can be ONE of the many steps & therapies needed to get rid of HIV.

You may forward this link to scientists across the globe and let them prove or disprove my claims.

These are some of reviewers comments I am getting;

Quote

Review #1 -In my opinion the paper is not well written, shows little understanding of the literature or pathogenesis. There is no logical or scientific thinking and it has no clear methods or data. I do not recommend this manuscript for publication.

Obviously it is them who do not understand anything, just relying on books and books for what they purport to know.

Quote

Review #2 -The reported clearance of HIV would constitute breaking news in the field. Methotrexate has been used for treatment of lymphomas and other conditions for a relatively long time and is considered safe at the used doses. Therefore, the quality of the report need to be substantially improved to attract the attention it deserves. To being with, the layout of the draft does not comply with the accepted publishing practice: Summary, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion and References. The sections Aims, Hypotheses and Justification are not used in scientific reports and should be removed. Methodology should include the technique applied to measure HIV viremia, cell counts and details of treatment. The fact that the 2 responding patients have been negative for HIV viremia for 9 months after methotrexate treatment and HAART suspension needs to be included in the Abstract. Results should be organized in a table indicating the number of patients included, the number of responders to methotrexate, age, gender, time in HAART before treatment, CD4 counts, CD4 nadirs if available, presence of cancers, TB and other health conditions. Responses in 2 out of 16 patients means a success rate of 12.5%, and the title and general writing should clearly reflect this fact. The 4th paragraph in page 8 could be presented as a graph for each patient, even if the full data set is available for only some of them. An important consideration is the possibility of residual HIV replication to levels below the detection limit of the used assay.

This is not a case report, the report is already published! This is simply a methodology used to attain the results so the blah blah should not apply!

Unfortunately there is no opportunity to answer reviewers so let us take it slow. Eventually it will be published.

You've got a chip on your shoulder, or a lot of chutzpah. People take your work seriously (and isn't that the objective) and yet GENEROUSLY give their time and expertise to explain how your message and your work might be better disseminated.

And you have several times belittled such information / advice and the people giving it to you, as beside the point, useless, "blah blah", unintelligent, and so on...

Everybody could win, but you almost seem to sabotage your effort so it ends up lose lose, not win win.

Also there is a DEEP evasive streak in almost all your communication....

Logged

“From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need” 1875 K Marx

It is not easy for everybody to understand this, even the peer reviewers who are mostly professors of virology find it difficult. I have talked to leading scientists one on one but they all seem to have a lot of trouble getting the point. However, medical novices and laymen are better able to grasp and follow my ideas.

It is because academicians have been taught in the same way of thinking and it is difficult to change the way they think. Laymen have more open minds.

I should like to meet you some day, especially after my methodology has been universally proved and accepted, and you have used it to get back your dignity.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

You are a pharmacist, and some sort of scientist. You need to start acting like a responsible practitioner of your chosen profession, and stop belittling all the people who are also telling you to act professionally...

The reviewers number 2's comments on your research were very constructive... Why not take them and grow in your profession...

We all share the same goal. If achieving the goal means you have to "play the game" a little bit, you know just strategically, well dearie, that's the way it works in all jobs...

People have bent over backwards to take your intent seriously but you need to step up your communication game...

Logged

“From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need” 1875 K Marx

Whoa, are you saying that a cure will give us back our dignity? How arrogant!

I've been poz for years and I have NOT lost my dignity, thank you very much

Oh yes, not just you, but if anyone of us has a disease such as HIV then we all lose our dignity. Imagine what will happen in a hundred years if everyone is infected and there is significant antiretroviral treatment failure. People will never be able to lead normal lives, with increased death rate and most of all, inability to reproduce normally. That is what I call losing dignity!

So it is not arrogance but it is the truth, like it or not.

Quote

If Dr Barasa was a legitimate research scientist who had found a cure for AIDS, would he have the time to participate in this forum to this extent?

NO

I have a lot of time to live normally. I have never been to a research lab; I only analyse and interpret what other scientists have already done and I have immensely acknowledged their works in my own works. I could never have achieved this without their publications.

So expect me around in POZ, as long as it exists.

Quote

We all share the same goal. If achieving the goal means you have to "play the game" a little bit, you know just strategically, well dearie, that's the way it works in all jobs..

Yes dearie, I agree completely, but consider;

I may not have the capacity to carry out all those things they want as an individualI must report an important finding like this so those with capacity can investigate furtherCall a spade a spade ; if some learned fellow cannot tell the difference between a report and a methodology....no kind words especially if his folly can cause delays in this important publicationDelay is used by HIV to conquer body defenses, by killing the very first CD4s that profile it hence a delay in seroconversion as it establishes reservoirs.